Monday's Daily Pulse

What you need to know about Florida today

| 4/29/2013

Lawmakers finish up budget deal

Lawmakers sealed an agreement on a $74 billion budget deal late Sunday for the fiscal year that begins July 1, locking down language on $480 million in teacher pay raises, a new formula for paying hospitals under the Medicaid program and a few projects for key lawmakers’ districts. Read more from the Times/Herald, the News Service of Florida and the AP.

Sharp rate increases proposed for the state's largest property insurer could threaten Florida's flagship real estate and tourism industries just as they're turning the corner from the downturn and the Gulf oil spill. [Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune]

Small builders: We're shut out

Many home-grown builders cannot find money to build houses at a time when the inventory of available homes listed for sale is at its lowest point in about eight years. The community banks that wrote them checks during the peak of the market almost a decade ago are under increased scrutiny from regulators who now take a dim view of real-estate-heavy loan portfolios. [Source: Orlando Sentinel].

Parents look to the Internet for child care

At a time when babysitting horror stories are just a Google search away, moms and dads are hiring strangers to watch their kids based on website profiles and clean record guarantees rather than hiring a friend of a friend or the high school senior from church. They are finding sitters in virtual marketplaces, or filling out forms online and waiting for the nanny to arrive. And for those who need to book their sitters on the go, there’s an app for that, too. [Source: Miami Herald]

Home sizes growing again

After shrinking 10 percent during the bust, the typical new American home built last year grew to an unprecedented 2,300 square feet, U.S. census data show. Homes in the South ballooned even bigger, to nearly 2,400 square feet. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

› 'Serious-gaming' win for Orlando business[Orlando Sentinel] Out of a dozen entries from across the country, an Orlando-based high-tech company recently landed one of the top honors in a "serious-gaming" contest tied to the Defense Users' GameTech Conference, an industry trade show held earlier this month in Orlando.

› Orlando: Where restaurants roll out new ideas[Orlando Sentinel] New products or menus often are tried out in Orlando because it's a big city filled with chains, a diverse population and millions of annual visitors. It is also home to several national and regional restaurant companies, which like to test close to corporate headquarters.

› Gainesville's Startup Alley covets UF computer grads[Gainesvile Sun] In a factory-like basement crammed with shelves loaded with electronic parts and work benches covered in computers, tools and wires, University of Florida students are getting ready to pitch their mobile phone applications to a panel of area entrepreneurs.